Netflix just dropped the trailer for Adam Sandler’s Spaceman. Okay, this is going to seem a bit odd, but here’s the story: Sandler is playing an isolated astronaut who gets a helping hand in the form of emotional support from, well, an oversized spacefaring arachnid or spider for those of you who failed zoology 101. This is a sci-fi film. But the trailer is much more and feels more psychological drama in space. It will premiere at the Berlin Film Festival in February before a limited theatrical run beginning on the 23rd of next month. It’s not your typical Netflix release, but you can watch Spaceman on the mega streamer on March 1.
The screenplay for Spaceman was written by Colby Day, known for In the Blink of an Eye, starring Kate McKinnon, David Diggs, and Rashida Jones. Johan Renck directs the film. He knows how to make a movie, as he’s best known for the critically acclaimed HBO miniseries Chernobyl. That was good, btw. There is some preexisting IP for Spaceman. It’s based on a relatively recent novel from 2017, Spaceman of Bohemia, by author Jaroslav Kalfař.
The official description says, “Six months into a solitary research mission to the edge of the solar system, an astronaut, Jakub (Adam Sandler), realizes that the marriage he left behind might not be waiting for him when he returns to Earth. Desperate to fix things with his wife, Lenka (Carey Mulligan), he is helped by a mysterious creature from the beginning of time he finds hiding in the bowels of his ship. Hanuš (voiced by Paul Dano) works with Jakub to make sense of what went wrong before it is too late.”
Now, onto the trailer. It shows Sandler’s character, Jakub, is already 189 days into his solo space mission. He’s understandably struggling to cope with the isolation of it all. Wouldn’t you? Then he meets this gigantic spider-like organism, voiced by Dano, and Jakub says, “I’m losing my mind.” Yea, he probably is, but that remains to be seen.
“I wish to assist you in your emotional distress,” the talking spider tells Jakub. The cast also includes Kunal Nayyar, Lena Olin, and Isabella Rossellini. Spaceman was produced by Channing Tatum, Reid Carolin, Peter Kiernan, Michael Parets, Tim Headington, Lia Buman, and Max Silva. Ben Ormand, Johan Renck, and Barry Bernardi serve as Executive Producers.
